Sheet metal water pump

ABSTRACT

A WATER PUMP FOR AUTOMOBILES IS MANUFACTURED WITH A SHEET METAL BODY AND IMPELLER. THE CONSTRUCTION IS HIGHLY ECONOMICAL BY VIRTURE OF THE USE OF STAMPINGS WHEREIN THE PUMP HAS A DOUBLE THICKNESS NON-BREAKABLE STRUCTURE.

Nov. 16, 1971 R. J. GRAY SHEET-METAL WATER PUMP Filed Sept. :2, 1969 INVENTOR ROBERT J. GRAY ATTORNEY United States Patent US. Cl. 64--3 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A water pump for automobiles is manufactured with a sheet metal body and impeller. The construction is highly economical by virtue of the use of stampings wherein the pump has a double thickness non-breakable structure.

Automobile water pumps have traditionally been made of gray iron or aluminum castings and such mode of manufacture is relatively expensive. Additionally, castings are known to contain hidden defects which cause failure, sometimes causing accidents but in any event harmful to the engine for failure of cooling water supply, on even ruinous.

The prevent not only obviates the cost on a first cost basis for tooling and machining of cast water pumps but also economizes in production in the aspect of materials cost. Additionally, the use of stampings instead of castings produces an automobile water pump which cannot crack or fracture, because of ductility of the metal as compared with the brittleness of cast metal.

A detailed description of the invention now follows in conjunction with the appended drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view, partially in section, of the invention, and

FIG. 2 is a plan view taken from the right of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawing, the invention comprises a pump shaft 10 which is force fitted and keyed on a collar 14 having a groove 17 into which has been swaged a sheet metal impeller 22. The impeller is an integral stamping having a central aperture marginally swaged in groove 17 and comprising a disc having a plurality of blades 25 ben't perpendicularly from the plane of the disc at the edges of respective spokes 28. Eight such blades are shown but it will be understood that the invention is not thus limited.

The impeller is disposed on shaft 10 offset from a cylindrical housing 33 and it will be understood that it fits into a pump chamber or cavity of the automobile engine block (not shown) to which the housing is secured as by bolts which pass through registering aperture pairs 36 and 37 in the usual manner in which cast housings of water pumps are secured to engine blocks.

Shaft 10 is provided with suitable seals such as the ceramic ring seal 40 and the seal 43 which engages it. The seal 40 is a light press fit on a rubber ring 46 having a right angle cross section and which ring is disposed by light press fit on shaft 10. Seal 40 rotates with the impeller and has a sealing fit against the face of the seal 43 which is stationarily secured. Seal 43 is of a conventional commercially obtainable construction commonly sold for water pump seals.

Shaft 10 is supported in housing 33 by a conventional ball bearing 48 having a stationary outer race in accordance with customary practice. The outer end of shaft 10 is provided with fan hub 52, in the usual manner. The housing 33 is comprised of two nested cupped plates 55 and 58 of stamped sheet metal. Thus, an outer plate 55 and an inner plate 58 are formed to tightly fit into each other with the registering apertures 36 and 37 and having major flanges 55a and 58a in face to face contact. These flanges are generally radially disposed, although having some 3,620,042. Patented Nov. 16, 1971 ice slight slope. The inner plate 58 has an outer circumferential skirt 62 terminating in a U-shaped bend 65, whereby it is folded on itself to effect double thickness for at least a portion of the housing circumference. Skirt 62 is forced fitted into the peripheral portion 68 of the outer housing plate to complete the substantially double thickness of the circumference.

The inner plate is further provided with an axial inner collar 71 for force fit securement of the seal element 43.

The outer plate has an external oppositely extending collar 74 in which is force fitted the bearing 48. Collar 74 has a turned over lip 77 for hearing retention.

It will be noted in FIG. 1 that the major radial areas of the plates are in face to face relation at 80 so as to form a double thickness wall and this double thickness wall is continued radially outward to provide for double thickness circumferentially at the skirt 62 which terminates in radial flange 83 through which the apertures 37 are punched. In a similar manner, plate 55 has a radial outer flange 86 through which apertures 36 are punched.

At the meeting line 90 of the flanges 83 and 86 spot welding may be applied, or a continuous weld used in order to fully join the housing plates into a single integral and nonseparable member, having a double thickness wall outwardly of the center openings.

Further, the rounded contour effected by the bend 65 facilitates easy insertion into the pump cavity of an engine block, and the double thick wall portion or collar 93 from bend 65 to flange 83 effects a centering means to align the housing with such cavity.

I claim:

1. In an automobile water pump, a housing having a pair of cylindrical inner and outer nested sheet metal plates of cupped configuration having face to face contact throughout their major areas to effect a double thickness wall, said wall having a double thickness radial portion encompassed by a substantially double thickness circumferential portion and terminating in a double thickness radial flange encompassing said circumferential portion.

2. A water pump as set forth in claim 1, each of said plates having an axially extending collar at the central areas, said collars extending in opposite axial directions, a seal in one said collar, and a bearing in the other.

3. A water pump as set forth in claim 1, the inner of said plates being folded on itself to effect said double circumferential thickness for at least an axial portion thereof to effect a centering collar for insertion into the pump cavity of an engine block.

4. A water pump as set forth in claim 1, each of said plates having an axially extending collar at the central areas, said collars extending in opposite axial directions, a seal in one said collar, and a bearing in the other, the inner of said plates being folded on itself to effect said double circumferential thickness for at least an axial portion thereof to effect a centering collar for insertion into the pump cavity of an engine block.

5. In an automobile water pump as set forth in claim 1, one of said plates being folded on itself to effect a portion of said double circumferential thickness and the other of said plates being formed to be coaxial with said portion to complete said double circumferential thickness, and each said plate having a flange extending radially, and said flanges forming said double thickness radial flange.

6. In an automobile water pump, a housing having a pair of cylindrical inner and outer nested sheet metal plates of cupped configuration having face to face contact throughout their major areas to effect a double thickness wall, said wall having a double thickness radial portion, effected by continuous contiguity of corresponding portions of said plates, encompassed by a substantially double .3 4 thickness circumferential portion, effected by continuous 3,155,045 11/1964 Lown et al. 415-197 contiguity of corresponding portions of said plates, and 2,988,006 6/1961 Becker 6054 terminating in a double thickness radial flange, effected 3,059,582 10/1962 Greene et a1 415170 A by continuous contiguity of corresponding portions of said FOREIGN PATENTS plates, encompassing said circumferential portion. 5

663,486 5/1963 Canada 415-201 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,591,939 7/1926 Humphrey 415-219 U.S. C1.X.R. 1,729,499 9/1929 Anthoni 30830 10 415--219 HENRY F. RADUAZO, Primary Examiner 

